The Kentucky Wildcats and the Florida Gators will square off this Saturday for their respective regular-season finales. Will Kentucky double down on its mastery of the Gators this season? Or will Florida even things up between them and John Calipari’s boys? Check out our preview below of this Kentucky-Florida SEC college basketball showdown.
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Betting Preview for the Kentucky Wildcats vs Florida Gators NCAA College Basketball Game on March 5 2022
Where: Stephen O’Connell Center, Gainesville, FL
When: Saturday, March 5, 2022, 2:00 PM ET
Line: Kentucky Wildcats (odds) vs. Florida Gators (odds) – view all 2022 NCAAB lines
TV Broadcast: CBS
Betting on the Kentucky Wildcats (odds)
Record: 24-6 Overall/13-4 Conference
Betting on the Kentucky Wildcats (24-6 Overall/13-4 Conference)
After getting wrecked on the road by the Arkansas Razorbacks in a 75-73 road loss on Feb. 26, the Wildcats won their first game of March by taking down the Ole Miss Rebels on Mar. 1, 83-72. Kentucky let vented all its frustrations from that loss to the Razorbacks on the Rebels, as the Wildcats shot 60 percent from the field. Oscar Tshiebwe had another double-double with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Recording double-doubles has been a norm for Tshiebwe, and among the most impressive stat lines he’s put up this season is the one he put up in a 78-57 home win over Flordia early last February. In that game, Tshiebwe scored 27 points and grabbed 19 rebounds. He is simply an un-containable force this season, and he should have plenty of success sagainst Florida. The Wildcats have one of the best offenses in the nation – if not the best. They are second nationally with 121.6 points per 100 possessions and eighth with 80.4 points per game.
Kentucky is 2-2-1 against the spread in its last four road games.
Betting on the Florida Gators (odds)
Record: 19-11 Overall/9-8 Conference
Is Florida now out of its slump completely? The Gators had a 1-3 stretch in February but are now 2-0 in its last two games. The Gators beat the Georgia Bulldogs 84-72 in Athens on Feb. 26 then took down the Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville on Mar. 1. Colin Castleton came through for the Gators against Vanderbilt, as the 6-11 center had 19 points and eight rebounds. The Gators are going to need Castleton to step up in order to slow down Tshiebwe. He can make Tshiebwe work defensively at least, as he scored 18 points in the first meeting with the Wildcats and he’s also averaging solid numbers this season. Castleton is scoring 16.1 points per game on 54.2 percent shooting while grabbing 9.0 points per contest. He is also a terrific rim protector, averaging 2.5 blocks per game for Florida, which is seventh in the nation in block percentage.
The Under is 3-1 in Florida’s last four games as the home team.
Writer’s Prediction
Kentucky wins, 74-67.
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